Humans are already chimeras!
The pig-human chimera had a 1/100,000 ratio of human cells to pig cells. Compare that to the human microbiome where there are as many microbial cells living inside the human body as there are human cells.
What does it mean to be human? Buggy?😄
Research suggests that the microbiome plays a role in digestion, the regulation of your immune system, disease prevention, wound healing, gut lining protection, appetite control, brain development, and even your emotions. Your skin bacteria also synthesize many useful compounds for the body, including antibiotics and acids that kill other harmful microbes, and carbon dioxide, which can slow the growth of fungus. In brief, microbes are an important part of what it means to be human.
Furthermore, here is the story of a human chimera: One Person, Two Sets of DNA: The Strange Case of the Human Chimera
And then there is mosaicism where the individual has 2 or more genotypes as a result of mutations.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but your discomfort about the pig-human chimera experiment is that "human" cells are involved. Making rat-mouse chimeras or pig-gorilla chimeras is not so discomforting.
Personally, I think if we make it unethical, the Chinese will do it anyway and beat us to the punch on acquiring the technology. On the other hand, when we outlawed embryonic stem cells, scientists went around the opposition by creating induced pluripotent stem cells. How about a chimera made of a synthetic human instead of "human" tissue thereby bypassing the ethical issue?😄
It's all part of nature, even the outrageous chimeric creations of man.
That's an interesting perspective. My discomfort comes from creating life that wouldn't otherwise exist for the sole purpose of serving human needs. Also not being able to predict how it will feel, what it might experience, where it's life will lead if it were to escape and the effects on the rest of the ecosystem. Creating life is not where it ends and certainly the stated goals are not where this technology ends.
I think your concerns are that of a moral and good person. They bring to mind H.G. Wells who explored some of these issues more than a century ago in The Island of Doctor Moreau. I have to agree there is certainly the chance that something could go wrong...
Thank you transhuman and for the reminder of Dr Moreau.
It is clearly a human trait to always do things that can be done. There is never any restraint. Pandora's box is always opened without a moment's hesitation and the justification is always either, if we don't do it, someone else will or we must do it to help everyone. There is zero wisdom in this approach because very often the potential consequences are irreversible and unknowable and take a subjective view of what is good for people. Has all the advances of the modern world made the people of the US happier, healthier, longer-lived, wealthier? No. The majority of anything learned is hidden and hoarded and used to exploit everyone else and in fact make these questionable paths easier and easier to tread. One day, we'll all wake up and we won't know what we are anymore if we don't destroy ourselves outright. We need to find wisdom and restraint first, then push the dangerous borders of our knowledge.
There is plenty of science that can be done that does not require playing with fire or moral gymnastics. There are perhaps other ways to grow organs.
You make some valid points, but I disagree here:
Improved medicine, public health and sanitation have statistically lengthened human lifespan very significantly in the past 120 years or so. Infant mortality is way down and people live longer in general. Those are facts. Also, the modern American works fewer hours and under safer conditions than his predecessors. As for happier, that may be debateable.
You are quite right to pick me up there ;) There have been many incredible advances from which many people have benefited.
You're right! Good points, and the microbiome is really important. My discomfort is that the chimeras would develop into grown organisms (pigs) that would be a mixture of pig and humans, at what point does the pig become more human than pig?
If a pig looks like a pig, but it's more than 50% human cells is it a pig? Would it even still look like a pig?
I've no issue with chimeras themselves :), mixing two other organisms is okay, cow-bird, snake-llama do what ever. It's just mixing us that makes me feel weird. Perhaps I shouldnt feel that way.
Yes, this doesn't exactly get easy if we are to simply look at it from a typical "pragmatic" point of view. I think the solution to the potential mess boils down to increasing societys focus on rational, practical, philosophy.
If we are to decide what is "human", what is "good for human beings" and "what rights a particular living organism ought to have", then we need to have a much greater emphasis on morality and what morality is even meant for.
A pig-human is a life form and most evolved persons would respect them as sentient beings, assuming they were not a threat. Buddhists believe there is no "us" and them. We are all part of the Earth's biotic community and are interdependent. We need oxygen and plants provide that along with energy in the form of food.
Where we draw the line between pig and man is defined by DNA differences. As I see it, each individual is a unique species characterized by their unique DNA pattern. Even identical twins are 2 different species because their exactly similar basic genomes are offset by the differences in their epigenetics. A big unifying factor is replicating with other humans. This is where we begin to form a perception of "us" being a species and working toward the well being of our tribe.